Una Boyle and Chris Goodwin from the Long Beach Peninsula Visitors Bureau (LBPVB) stopped in the other day to plan the upcoming annual membership drive for the organization.

[caption id="attachment_2500" align="aligncenter" width="525" caption="Una Boyle (left) & Chris Goodwin meet at beachdog.com to plan LBPVB Membership Drive 2011"][/caption]

Una became Executive Director of the LBPVB just about the same time Keleigh started beachdog.com.  Neither can believe how far both organizations have come–or that they’ve been at the business of promoting the Peninsula together for 13 years!

Chris is now the Data Coordinator for LBPVB, and an excellent one at that.  She and our very own Karl, who created the LBPVB databases, work together throughout the year to fine tune and improve both process and product.

While membership runs for the calendar year, the Visitors Bureau will run their 2011 membership drive from the Monday following Rod Run  (September 13th) through the end of the month.  Why so early?

Because of the Beach Vacation Planner.  We’re proudly producing the Planner again this year.  In order to get it produced, produced, printed and perfectly in the hands of those who begin vacation planning at the first of the year, we need all the member information the first week of October.

The print run is now at 75,000 copies which largely go off-peninsula, a lure piece to help people choose our beach as a vacation destination.  All LBPVB members receive a business listing in the guide and are eligible to buy full-color display ad space.

Ads are incredibly low-priced.  In fact, our fellows who produce similar guides in other communities tell us we’re nuts to sell ads so inexpensively.  Our distribution model is more targeted than many and our cost per impression is less than .008¢!  We’re able to make display ads inexpensive because the LBPVB and the City of Long Beach subsidize the guide.  Talk about a benefit of membership!

So watch for your renewal invoice on September 14th if you’re already a member of the LBPVB and be sure to get it back on time so you’re not left out of the Planner.  If your business is not a member, NOW is the time to stop in and change that!  If you’re interested in display ad space, contact Keith (keith@beachdog.com or 360-642-4431).

Once all the member information is verified for the Beach Vacation Planner, we start updating member information on funbeach.com, which is the most valuable marketing avenue Peninsula business owners can buy.  And, listing on the site is FREE for members, with links and other add-on advertising opportunities remaining INSANELY inexpensive by industry standards.

Don’t miss out!  Join or renew with the LBPVB today!

You can reach LBPVB at 360-642-2400 or:

• Executive Director Una Boyle  una@funbeach.com
• Assistant to the Director  vicki@funbeach.com
• Member Services:  chris@funbeach.com
• Volunteer Services:  joanne@funbeach.com
• Visitor Services:  ask@funbeach.com

When Tessah and Jami came in to talk about their new salon and its immediate needs, Sue wrote a note describing the nature of the appointment she was making for Keleigh and the women.  Much to everyone’s delight, they fell in love with Sue’s handwriting and asked if we could digitize it for their logo!

Here it is, in blackline, grayscale and full color:

Next came the business and appointment cards, conveniently dual-purposed as one, two-sided card:

Finally, their rate card, which is really fun at 5 inches square instead of a traditional brochure shape.

J.D.’s signs recently finished interpreting our art for a sign and it looks GREAT!  You can see it yourself on Pacific Highway, in front of Marsh’s Free Museum in downtown Long Beach.  Esteem is on the north side of Marsh’s.

Congratulations on the successful launch of your new Salon & Spa, Jami & Tessah!

Keith called on John Aylward after the “Great Coastal Gale of 2007.”  John and his crew did an outstanding job of replacing the roofs on both our home and our office building.  The home roof was composite…in a variety of layers and with five (yes, 5) different pitches.  That is, before it all but disappeared in the storm.  Our office had a cedar shake roof that was about half-obliterated.  John took what was left of the shakes, and the shake structure, down and replaced it with a plywood base and composite tile.  Nearly 3 years, and many good coastal storms, later, both are still perfect.

Recently taking on a partner and naming the company Affordable Roofing & Construction, John stopped by a couple of months ago and asked me to design a business card that could double as a logo.  He knew he wanted to use the color blue and had a sketch of a letter ‘A’ turned into a house.  No problem!  I gave John a draftsman-like font and added a chimney to the A, using white for the main field color and blue stripes to give it color ‘pop’ and strength, while limiting the palette for less expensive reproduction.  Once John and his partner had signed off on the art, I put it on a CD in multiple file formats so he could use the art with other vendors.  Within weeks, I was seeing the look on trucks and signs all over the Peninsula, and hanging over their shop door in Ocean Park.

Most recently, I created a 2-part carbonless, consecutively numbered quote/work order form for the company.   It’s gratifying when clients let me show them how they can save money by first brainstorming without thought of budget and then putting the parts together in a way that makes best use of their resources and in an order that makes sense.  Because John told me about the variety of projects he had in mind before we started, that he had the time and inclination to work with vendors himself, and that he wanted to keep the cash flow as tight as possible, his art developed in a way that best leveraged his resources to meet his goals.

By letting one shop (ours) give him art for other vendors, he keeps his art production costs in check as multiple graphic designers aren’t starting from scratch.

By starting with a logo, and getting clear about its important elements (in this case, the font, colors and stripes), John was able to keep his brand consistent as he quickly moved through a variety of collateral projects.  In other words, he got more bang for his buck because he was smart–not with deep pockets.

Way to brand on a budget, Affordable Roofing & Construction!

–Keleigh

You’re not alone!

We do our best to meet people where they want to be met in the marketing process.  Take the two brochures, below.

The one on the left, Willapa Harbor Scenic Highway 101 Willapa Heritage Corridor, was a project of Raymond High School senior Mitchell Hatfield.  He did a great job designing the brochure.  Keleigh helped him get the work from Publisher into a format an offset printer could use, then offered subsidized pricing to get them printed by the Willapa Harbor Chamber of Commerce and Dennis Company.  Pick up a copy at either the Willapa Harbor Chamber office or the Long Beach Peninsula Visitors Bureau and see if you can find all of the 400+ steel sculptures in the area!

The Astoria-Warrenton Chamber designed a brochure or their upcoming Ambassadors & Greeters Convention and just needed someone to take their art and quickly turn it into a short run of tri-fold brochures at a good price.  Done and done!

Have you been to the Lost Roo yet?  After much anticipation, the restaurant opened earlier this summer.  Reviews have been great! Just as the new restaurant was seating its first patrons, we launched their new website.

Of course, Kanga & Joey’s page are popular here at beachdog.com, but site statistics tell us the rest of you prefer looking at the menu.

Go for a beer and a game, or for a great meal with the family.  You’ll be glad you did!